The prognostic role of PRUNE2 in leiomyosarcoma

PRUNE2 plays an important role in regulating tumor cell differentiation,proliferation,and invasiveness in neuroblastoma.Our previous study revealed that PRUNE2/OBSCN two-gene relative expression classifer accurately differentiated leiomyosarcoma from gastrointestinal stromal tumor.However,the association between PRUNE2 expression and prognosis in leiomyosarcoma is poorly understood.In this study,we evaluated the prognostic role of PRUNE2 in leiomyosarcoma.PRUNE2 expression was detected using immunohistochemistry in 30 formalin-fixed,paraffin-embedded leiomyosarcoma tissues from MD Anderson Cancer Center,and high expression was detected in 36.7%(11/30)of the samples.To validate these results,immunohistochemistry was performed on another cohort of 45 formalin-fixed,paraffinembedded leiomyosarcoma tissues from Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute&Hospital,and high PRUNE2 protein expression was detected in 37.8%(17/45)of the samples.Moreover,elevated PRUNE2expression was significantly associated with tumor size(P=0.03)and hemorrhage/cyst(P=0.014),and was an independent favorable prognostic factor for overall survival in leiomyosarcoma patients from Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute&Hospital(P<0.05).These data suggest that increased PRUNE2protein expression may serve as a favorable prognostic marker in human leiomyosarcoma.

Active and passive smoking with breast cancer risk for Chinese females: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Previous studies suggested that smoking and passive smoking could increase the risk of breast cancer, but the results were inconsistent, especially for Chinese females. Thus, we systematically searched cohort and case-control studies investigating the associations of active and passive smoking with breast cancer risk among Chinese females in four English databases(PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, and Wiley) and three Chinese databases(CNKI, WanFang, and VIP). Fifty-one articles(3 cohort studies and 48 casecontrol studies) covering 17 provinces of China were finally included in this systematic review. Among Chinese females, there was significant association between passive smoking and this risk of breast cancer [odds ratio(OR): 1.62; 95% confidence interval(CI): 1.39–1.85; I2 = 75.8%, P < 0.001; n = 26] but no significant association between active smoking and the risk of breast cancer(OR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.89–1.20; I2 = 13.9%, P = 0.248; n = 31). The OR of exposure to husband's smoking and to smoke in the workplace was 1.27(95% CI: 1.07–1.50) and 1.66(95% CI: 1.07–2.59), respectively. The OR of light and heavy passive smoking was 1.11 and 1.41, respectively, for women exposed to their husband's smoke(< 20 and ≥ 20 cigarettes per day), and 1.07 and 1.87, respectively, for those exposed to smoke in the workplace(< 300 and ≥ 300 min of exposure per day). These results imply that passive smoking is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, and the risk seems to increase as the level of passive exposure to smoke increases among Chinese females. Women with passive exposure to smoke in the workplace have a higher risk of breast cancer than those exposed to their husband's smoking.

Key nodes of a micro RNA network associated with the integrated mesenchymal subtype of high-grade serous ovarian cancer

Metastasis is the main cause of cancer mortality. One of the initiating events of cancer metastasis of epithelial tumors is epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition(EMT), during which cells dedifferentiate from a relatively rigid cell structure/morphology to a flexible and changeable structure/morphology often associated with mesenchymal cells. The presence of EMT in human epithelial tumors is reflected by the increased expression of genes and levels of proteins that are preferentially present in mesenchymal cells. The combined presence of these genes forms the basis of mesenchymal gene signatures, which are the foundation for classifying a mesenchymal subtype of tumors. Indeed, tumor classification schemes that use clustering analysis of large genomic characterizations, like The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA), have defined mesenchymal subtype in a number of cancer types, such as high-grade serous ovarian cancer and glioblastoma. However, recent analyses have shown that gene expression-based classifications of mesenchymal subtypes often do not associate with poor survival. This "paradox" can be ameliorated using integrated analysis that combines multiple data types. We recently found that integrating m RNA and micro RNA(mi RNA) data revealed an integrated mesenchymal subtype that is consistently associated with poor survival in multiple cohorts of patients with serous ovarian cancer. This network consists of 8 major mi RNAs and 214 m RNAs. Among the 8 mi RNAs, 4 are known to be regulators of EMT. This review provides a summary of these 8 mi RNAs, which were associated with the integrated mesenchymal subtype of serous ovarian cancer.

A bird's eye view of the air pollution-cancer link in China

Air pollution in China comes from multiple sources,including coal consumption,construction and industrial dust,and vehicle exhaust.Coal consumption in particular directly determines the emissions of three major air pollutants:dust,sulfur dioxide(SO2),and nitrogen oxide(NOx).The rapidly increasing number of civilian vehicles is expected to bring NOx emission to a very high level.Contrary to expectations,however,existing data show that the concentrations of major pollutants[particulate matter-10(PM10),SO2,and nitrogen dioxide(NO2)]in several large Chinese cities have declined during the past decades,though they still exceed the national standards of ambient air quality.Archived data from China does not fully support that the concentrations of pollutants directly depend on local emissions,but this is likely due to inaccurate measurement of pollutants.Analyses on the cancer registry data show that cancer burden related to air pollution is on the rise in China and will likely increase further,but there is a lack of data to accurately predict the cancer burden.Past experience from other countries has sounded alarm of the link between air pollution and cancer.The quantitative association requires dedicated research as well as establishment of needed monitoring infrastructures and cancer registries.The air pollution-cancer link is a serious public health issue that needs urgent investigation.

Advances in circulating microRNAs as diagnostic and prognostic markers for ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer is one of the most lethal malignant gynecological tumors. More than 70% of patients with ovarian cancer are diagnosed at advanced stage. The 5-year survival in patients with advanced ovarian cancer is less than 30% because of the lack of effective biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and personalized treatment. MicroRNA （miR） is a class of small noncoding RNAs that negatively regulate gene expression primarily through post-transcriptional repression. Many studies on tissue miR in ovarian cancer have been carried out and show great potential in clinical practice. However, tissue samples are not easily available because sampling causes injur）n Researchers have started to focus on plasma/serum miR, assuming that blood samples may replace tissue samples in miR research in the future. Plasma/serum miR research is still in its early stages. Studies on its function in the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer have achieved some progress, but plasma/serum miR profiling for prognosis and personalized treatment of ovarian cancer remains unknown. A thorough understanding of the function of plasma/serum miR in ovarian cancer will facilitate early diagnosis and improve treatment for ovarian cancer.

Novel anti-melanoma treatment:focus on immunotherapy

Melanoma is an intractable cancer that is aggressive, lethal, and metastatic. The prognosis of advanced melanoma is very poor because it is insensitive to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The incidence of melanoma has been ascending stably for years worldwide, accompanied by increasing mortality. New approaches to managing this deadly disease are much anticipated to enhance the cure rate and to extend clinical benefits to patients with metastatic melanoma. Due to its high degree of immunogenicity, melanoma could be a good target for immunotherapy, which has been developed for decades and has achieved certain progress. This article provides an overview of immunotherapy for melanoma.

Luminescence properties of nitrogen-rich Ca-SiAlON:Eu2+ phosphors prepared by freeze-drying assisted combustion synthesis

Nitrogen-rich Eu2+-doped Ca-α-SiAlON phosphors(Cam/2-xSi12-m-nAlm+nOnN16-n:xEu) were synthesized by a freeze-drying assisted combustion synthesis(CS) route. Fast-synthesized products with high purity and uniform particle morphology were confirmed by X-ray diffraction(XRD) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM). The analysis of lattice parameters by comparison with empirical equations showed that the as-prepared phosphors had low oxygen content. A series of samples were prepared according to the stoichiometry of Cam/2-0.08Si12-mAlmN16:0.08 Eu for further research. The influences of m value on the luminescence properties were investigated in detail. As m increased, a redshift phenomenon was observed in both the excitation and emission spectra. First-principle electronic structure calculations showed that the 3d energy level of Ca played an important role in the occurrence of the redshift phenomenon.

Pouch size influences clinical outcome of pouch construction after total gastrectomy:A meta-analysis

AIM: To assess the clinical significance of pouch size in total gastrectomy for gastric malignancies.

Influence of wettability in immiscible displacements with lattice Boltzmann method

The role of wettability,often characterized by contact angle(θ),in two-phase immiscible phases displacement is not well understood.In this study,the color gradient lattice Boltzmann method(LBM),capable of maintaining the prescribedθ(from 0°to 180°at intervals of 10°)throughout the numerical simulations,was used to investigate the displacement patterns and displacement efficiency in a 2D porous medium.The capillary numbers(Ca)used were 0.01,1,and 100,and the viscosity ratios(M)used were 0.1,1,and 10.At M=10,the saturation(S)had a bilinear relationship withθ,while for M=0.1 and 1,the S-θrelationships were complicated by Ca.A saturation contour in the M-Ca-θspace was proposed to demonstrate the movement of a traditional 2D M-Ca phase diagram withθincrements.The value of S continued to increase after the breakthrough,and the final saturation(0.997)for the hydrophilic condition(θ=10°)was higher than that(0.673)for the hydrophobic condition(θ=170°).